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Search MSc Programs in Social Sciences 2019 in Amsterdam in Netherlands

An MSc, or Master of Science, is an academic distinction bestowed upon those who effectively complete a predetermined set of coursework in what is often a science-based discipline. The MSc often enhances career opportunities as well as earning potential.

Social sciences help students to better understand the interactions and systems within human society. Topics covered may include how communities and populations form governments, make laws, develop economic systems, or how individuals make decisions.

The people, language, and culture of the Netherlands is referred to as "Dutch". A modern European country today, Netherlands preserved its highly international character and is known for its liberal mentality. The Netherlands has many universities. The country has recently converted their own titles into the bachelor/master system. There are two types of universities: Academic (focussing more on theoretical knowledge, aka "Universiteit") or Applied Sciences (focussing more on practical knowledge, aka "Hogeschool")

The capital city of Netherlands, Amsterdam has well known universities such as the University of Amsterdam and Universiteitsbibliotheek Amsterdam. These educational institutions tend to provide diversified graduate and post graduate degree programs, and they have top notch Research and Development facilities.

Request Information Master of Science Degrees in Social Sciences in Amsterdam in Netherlands 2019

Social Influence is an English-taught Master's track offered by the Department of Social Psychology.
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Many organisations and companies benefit from effectively influencing the behaviour of citizens or consumers: Politicians try to win votes, advertising agencies try to increase sales of a particular product, and municipalities try to discourage cycling in pedestrian areas. But what is the best way to approach this?

Social Influence is an English-taught Master's track offered by the Department of Social Psychology.

Why are some advertising campaigns effective and others are not?
How do we encourage fewer people to cycle in pedestrian areas?
How do we study the effectiveness of measures to prevent tax evasion?
An evidence-based approach

For many years intuition, experience, and creativity were decisive factors when designing interventions in human behaviour. However, this did not always lead to effective interventions. A famous example of this concerns a unique forest in the United States: a sign was put up at the entrance informing people that a lot of petrified wood had gone missing as a result of vandalism and theft. However, this intervention actually led to more of the wood being stolen (Cialdini et al., 2006). Closer to home there also are examples of well-known campaigns which are not always the most effective: a billboard with an image of Miffy proved to be more effective at increasing road safety than the “wordt geen slaaprijder” (don’t be a drowsy driver) campaign....
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This Master's programme combines theory with practical applications, with an open eye on the possibilities to use modern technology (e.g., e-health). It combines elements
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Almost all children hate smoking, yet about a quarter of young adults take up smoking. What changed in-between childhood and adulthood and what can we do to prevent this behaviour?

Similar questions can be asked for binge drinking, problematic use of drugs, and activities that started out as innocent fun, such as gaming, but that have become addictive. Further, overweight and obesity, even in young children, is one of the most important health problems in the western world with an enormous socio-economic impact. What can we do about that?

Psychology: Development and Health - smoking and drinking

Another important topic for health is the role of stress in the development of these behaviours, as stress is widely acknowledged as one of the key contributors in developing addictive behaviours, and obesity. Also, stress is related to drop out of work and decreases in general well-being....
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The Department of Social Psychology offers an English-speaking master’s program in Cultural Psychology starting in September 2017. We invite ambitious Dutch and internati
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The Department of Social Psychology offers an English-speaking master’s programme in Cultural Psychology. We invite ambitious Dutch and international students with a genuine interest in (cross-) cultural psychology to apply for this selective, one-year programme.

Program description

The program combines approaches from cultural and cross-cultural psychology and deals with three central issues:

1) How does culture shape our psychological functioning? 2) What are the consequences of cultural similarities and/or differences for the individual, the group, and for intergroup relations, 3) How can we design and evaluate interventions and programs that are culturally sensitive?

The track focuses on organisational psychology; this discipline studies the relationship between employees and their social working environment (e.g., colleagues, supervi
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How can you successfully guide organisational change?
How do you handle conflict in organizations?
How do you create effective teams?
How do you develop a learning organisation?
How can you use individual employee’s potential when working in teams?

These questions are explored in the Consultancy & Organisational Development master's track.

The track focuses on organisational psychology; this discipline studies the relationship between employees and their social working environment (e.g., colleagues, supervisors, teams, organization as a whole).

Important topics in this field are:

Organisational culture and organisational change
Cooperation within teams
Leadership
Social interaction
Conflict management through negotiation
Decision-making processes
Team and organisational development
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The track focuses on occupational health psychology, more specifically the psychology of interventions that promote the well-being and functioning of people at work.
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The track focuses on occupational health psychology, more specifically the psychology of interventions that promote the well-being and functioning of people at work. The background, development, and application of work-related coaching and other interventions (including mindfulness) play a key role in this track. Students also learn how to develop evidence-based approaches, introduce interventions and apply coaching techniques.

Which proactive and preventative steps can you take to ensure “healthy” career development?
What can organisations do to contribute to job satisfaction and promote the long-term health and well-being of their employees?
How can you return to work successfully and effectively after being absent due to work-related health problems?
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Apply knowledge from the field of Brain and Cognitive Sciences to answer important societal questions. Students learn to set up applied experiments, and to translate empi
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Apply knowledge from the field of Brain and Cognitive Sciences to answer important societal questions. Students learn to set up applied experiments, and to translate empirical findings into practical advice.

The brain and mind

Society's interest in the brain and mind has exploded in recent years. This is due in part to increased scientific knowledge about the relationship between cognitive functions, like attention and memory, and performance in every-day life, as well as to technological advances that have provided unprecedented insight into the brain’s workings and new methods that allow continuous monitoring of behavior or cognitive and bodily functions (e.g., internet, wearables, smartphone apps). The primary focus in the curriculum of the master track Brain and Cognition in Society is on how theoretical and methodological knowledge from the field of brain and cognition can contribute to answering societal questions....
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Understanding data about human behaviour is an important and valuable skill in today's society. Companies, public institutions and governmental organizations — they all u
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Understanding data about human behaviour is an important and valuable skill in today's society. Companies, public institutions and governmental organizations — they all use the continuous stream of big data to describe and predict human behaviour.

Behavioural Data Science

The police use data to predict the risk of burglary by area and week of the year, insurance companies adjust their prices based on client data, and schools adjust educational programmes based on what is known about student progress.

Leveraging the full potential of these massive amounts of behavioural data towards these goals greatly benefits from a thorough understanding of data science techniques and human behaviour modelling. The master's track Behavioural Data Science aims to combine these two. The programme assumes knowledge of psychology, research methodology, and applied statistics at an undergraduate level, and continues with training on advanced (big) data techniques, academic skills, as well as practical and professional skills. ...
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Political Science at the University of Amsterdam investigates how ongoing social, economic, and political transformations affect local, national, European and global gove
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Political Science at the University of Amsterdam investigates how ongoing social, economic, and political transformations affect local, national, European and global governance. Political Science offers five different specialisations: International Relations, Public Policy and Governance, Political Economy, Political Theory and European Politics and External Relations.

We study politics broadly, addressing interactions between the political system, the economy and civil society. A core theme of the teaching curriculum of the Department is Transnational Politics.

At the Graduate School of Social Sciences, we offer the following tracks in the Master’s programme in Political Science:...
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Are you interested in how social contexts affect the development of children, adolescents and young adults? Do you want to make a difference in the well-being of young pe
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Are you interested in how social contexts affect the development of children, adolescents and young adults? Do you want to make a difference in the well-being of young people? The Master’s track Youth at Risk prepares you to become a scientist-practitioner in the field of preventive youth care, parenting and education, to enhance the development of youth at risk.

Key topics In this Master’s track
individual susceptibility to risk (genes, neurobiology, personality and cognitive ability)
oppositional, defiant, and antisocial or delinquent behaviour in youths
psychosocial problems, (social) anxiety and depressive moods
child abuse, and foster and adoption family constellations
learning disabilities, truancy, dropout, and school and teacher support factors
intervention (induced) effects, effective elements, and implementation practices
A Master about social contexts and youth development
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For students who wish to conduct research that has an applied character aimed at solving problems or contributing understanding where this is directly needed, we offer th
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For students who wish to conduct research that has an applied character aimed at solving problems or contributing understanding where this is directly needed, we offer the possibility to specialize in Applied Anthropology. In this kind of research, the methods and theories of anthropological research are used to provide insights and suggestions to practical problems with which non-anthropological parties such as governments, companies, NGOs or other organizations are confronted. Students carry out research in collaboration with such organizations. As part of answering their research questions, students study the problem as well as the organization: an in-depth understanding of the organization’s interests, culture and morals is needed to understand how its members perceive the problem they want to be solved....
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The Master’s in Sociology at the University of Amsterdam offers a comprehensive programme focusing on current social issues.
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The Master’s in Sociology at the University of Amsterdam offers a comprehensive programme focusing on current social issues. The Master's programme in Sociology teaches you how to think about sociological issues independently and offers you a sound understanding of sociological theory and methods.

In this programme, you will acquire intellectual and practical skills enabling you to analyse problems, structures and processes related to the coexistence of people.

With a wide range of courses on offer, the Master's in Sociology provides you with the opportunity to put together your own curriculum within a broad sociological spectrum.

Student profile

If you want to know what causes social problems, you have a desire to understand underlying processes, if you are critical and interested in alternative explanations for what happens in the world around you, if you want to conduct your own research and be inspired by the classical sociological scholars on current issues, then this is your study programme. In sum: this Master's is the right choice for you as a critical, inquiring student who has a desire to gain in-depth knowledge on current social issues and find solutions for these....
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In the Master’s in Public Policy and Governance, you will learn to critically analyse public policies in often controversial political settings. The programme focuses on
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In the Master’s in Public Policy and Governance, you will learn to critically analyse public policies in often controversial political settings. The programme focuses on both research and practice and links theory and practice by looking into interesting cases and inviting inspiring guest speakers.

The Public Policy and Governance track prepares students to meet demands for effective and legitimate public action in complex and often controversial political settings. The programme helps students develop as critical analysts and innovative designers by linking research and practice, theory and action on the ‘shop floor’ on the local, national, European, and international levels. Opportunities are provided to study policy work at and across these levels....
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The Master’s programme in Political Theory will teach you political theory and applied philosophy in a theoretical, practical and analytical way. You are challenged to cr
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The Master’s programme in Political Theory will teach you political theory and applied philosophy in a theoretical, practical and analytical way. You are challenged to critically analyse and reflect on current political contexts and social and political thought.

The Political Theory track provides students with the conceptual tool-kits to analyse the complex normative and methodological issues of contemporary political life. Students are encouraged to take an active role in critical reflection on political practices, institutional arrangements, and social science methods by building on a solid foundation in social and political thought. The track combines analytical rigour with policy relevance....
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In the Master’s in European Politics and External Relations, you will analyse politics and power in Europe. The programme focuses on the challenges of Europe as a part of
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In the Master’s in European Politics and External Relations, you will analyse politics and power in Europe. The programme focuses on the challenges of Europe as a part of an increasingly interdependent, globalised and multi-polar world. You will be given the analytical, theoretical and empirical tools to develop a deeper understanding of the EU’s role as an international actor. You will also gain knowledge on both internal and external dimensions of EU policies such as for example the economic crisis, challenges surrounding security, the environment, the refugee crisis, the rise of populism, trade as well as the EU’s role in its immediate neighbourhood and the world and many more topics. Our teaching is research-led and our programme offers access to seminars and debates of the research community of ACCESS Europe. During past years, European Politics and External Relations track students were given the opportunity to attend a study trip to Brussels, which included meetings and discussions in key EU institutions....
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The Master Political Geography focuses on three core themes: geopolitics, globalisation and governance. By examining these concepts, political geographies in our current
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The Master Political Geography focuses on three core themes: geopolitics, globalisation and governance. By examining these concepts, political geographies in our current globalised world are analysed and researched. Theories and methods in political geography are thoroughly studied before a thesis project in the field is conducted.

Political Geography: Geopolitics, Globalisation and Governance

The Master's in Political Geography focuses on three core concepts (geopolitics, globalisation and governance) to explore the political geographies of our globalising world. These pertain to the dynamics of the spatialities of politics, including domestic politics, international relations and transnational politics, and how they can be understood through key geographical concepts such as territory, place, scale and network....
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